Calgary is tied for 32nd spot along with Oslo and Helsinki in a survey that ranks cities according to the world’s best quality of living.

The Mercer 2012 Quality of Living Survey looked at 221 cities around the world and gave the number one spot to Vienna. Zurich and Auckland follow in second and third place and Munich is in fourth.

According to the report Canadian cities still dominate the top of the index for the Americas.

Vancouver was the top ranked Canadian city at number five followed by Ottawa (14), Toronto (15) and Montreal (23).

Calgary advanced one spot from last year and ranks 32 on the overall quality of living ranking.

The top ranked American city was Honolulu at number 28 followed by San Francisco at number 29.

The survey says that the cities with the lowest quality of living globally are Khartoum, Sudan at number 217, followed by N’Djamena, Chad, Port-au-Prince, Haiti and Bangui, Central African Republic. Baghdad, Iraq is at the bottom at 221.

The consulting company does the survey on an annual basis and uses New York City as the base city for comparison.

Included in this year’s ranking is a separate category that identifies the cities with the best infrastructure based on electricity supply, water availability, telephone and mail services, public transportation, traffic congestion and the range of international flights from local airports.

“In order for multinational companies to ensure their expatriates are compensated appropriately and an adequate hardship allowance is included in compensation packages, they must be aware of current events and local circumstances,” said Slagin Parakatil, Senior Researcher at Mercer. “Factors such as internal stability, law enforcement effectiveness, crime levels and medical facilities are important to consider when deciding on an international assignment, and the impact on daily life that could be encountered by the expatriate in overseas placements.”

Singapore was at the top of the list followed by Frankfurt and Munich in second place. Port-au-Prince ranks at the bottom of the list.

The top ranked Canadian cities in the infrastructure category were;  Vancouver (9), Toronto (16) and Ottawa (25).

To read the complete report, visit the Mercer website.


Mercer Quality of Living Survey - Worldwide Rankings, 2012

Rank

City

Country

1

Vienna

Austria

2

Zurich

Switzerland

3

Auckland

New Zealand

4

Munich

Germany

5

Vancouver

Canada

6

Düsseldorf

Germany

7

Frankfurt

Germany

8

Geneva

Switzerland

9

Copenhagen

Denmark

10

Bern

Switzerland

10

Sydney

Australia

12

Amsterdam

Netherlands

13

Wellington

New Zealand

14

Ottawa

Canada

15

Toronto

Canada

16

Berlin

Germany

17

Hamburg

Germany

17

Melbourne

Australia

19

Luxembourg

Luxembourg

19

Stockholm

Sweden

21

Perth

Australia

22

Brussels

Belgium

23

Montreal

Canada

24

Nurnberg

Germany

25

Singapore

Singapore

26

Canberra

Australia

27

Stuttgart

Germany

28

Honolulu, HI

United States

29

Adelaide

Australia

29

Paris

France

29

San Francisco, CA

United States

32

Calgary

Canada

32

Helsinki

Finland

32

Oslo

Norway

35

Boston, MA

United States

35

Dublin

Ireland

37

Brisbane

Australia

38

London

United Kingdom

39

Lyon

France

40

Barcelona

Spain

41

Milan

Italy

42

Chicago, IL

United States

43

Washington, DC

United States

44

Lisbon

Portugal

44

New York City, NY

United States

44

Seattle, WA

United States

44

Tokyo

Japan

48

Kobe

Japan

49

Madrid

Spain

49

Pittsburgh, PA

United States

49

Yokohama

Japan